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CEGL000752 Abies lasiocarpa - Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Woodland
Type Concept Sentence: No Data Available
Common (Translated Scientific) Name: Subalpine Fir - Whitebark Pine / Grouse Whortleberry Woodland
Colloquial Name: No Data Available
Hierarchy Level: Association
Type Concept: This is an extensive forest type in much of the highest forest belt east of the Continental Divide in Montana and is also known from western Wyoming and as far west as eastern Oregon. It is found on all exposures at elevations ranging from 2200 to 3070 m (7200-10,075 feet). Soils are generally thin and poorly developed from a variety of parent materials and are usually acidic to very acidic in the surface layers. Soil textures range from gravelly loams to silts. Ground cover typically has moderate amounts of bare ground and rock. Tree cover is typically open, rarely exceeding 50% total over. Abies lasiocarpa shares dominance with Pinus albicaulis with 10-60% cover, averaging about 20-30%, each. Higher canopy cover occurs in more protected locations. Other tree species may be present and include Picea engelmannii, Pinus flexilis, and Pinus contorta. Understory growth is usually dominated by Vaccinium scoparium, and on drier sites Carex geyeri can be more abundant. Arnica latifolia is the only consistently present forb across all studies. This association is differentiated from pure Pinus albicaulis associations by the consistent codominance of Abies lasiocarpa in the overstory canopy.
Diagnostic Characteristics: No Data Available
Rationale for Nominal Species or Physiognomic Features: No Data Available
Classification Comments: This type is differentiated from similar association by the consistent mix of Abies lasiocarpa with Pinus albicaulis.
Similar NVC Types: No Data Available
note: No Data Available
Physiognomy and Structure: No Data Available
Floristics: Tree cover is typically open, rarely exceeding 50% total over. Abies lasiocarpa shares dominance with Pinus albicaulis with 10-60% cover, averaging about 20-30%, each. Higher canopy cover occurs in more protected locations. Other tree species may be present and include Picea engelmannii, Pinus flexilis, and Pinus contorta. Understory growth is usually dominated by Vaccinium scoparium, and on drier sites Carex geyeri can be more abundant. Species composition is highly variable, influenced by neighboring forest types. Arnica latifolia, Carex rossii, and Juncus parryi are among the more commonly encounter herbaceous species.
Dynamics: No Data Available
Environmental Description: This is an extensive forest type in much of the highest forest belt east of the Continental Divide in Montana and is also known from western Wyoming and as far west as eastern Oregon. It is found on all exposures at elevations ranging from 2200 to 3070 m (7200-10,075 feet). Elevation range changes depending on the limits of treeline north to south and on moisture gradients of different exposures whether on the east or west side of mountains. In central Montana, elevation ranges from 2200 to 2500 m (7200-8100 feet), in southwestern Montana from 2440 to 2700 m (8000-8800 feet), in south-central Montana from 2500 to 2740 m (8100-9000 feet), in northwestern Wyoming from 2700 to 3070 m (8900-10,075 feet), and in northeastern Oregon from 2300 to 2600 m (7600-8500 feet). Soils are generally thin and poorly developed from a variety of parent materials and are usually acidic to very acidic in the surface layers. Soil textures range from gravelly loams to silts. Ground cover typically has moderate amounts of bare ground and rock.
Geographic Range: This high-elevation, open forest occurs near treeline in Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Oregon, and is expected to occur in Washington, Alberta and British Columbia.
Nations: CA?,US
States/Provinces: AB?, ID, MT, OR, WA?, WY
Plot Analysis Summary:
http://vegbank.org/natureserve/ELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.688360
Confidence Level: Low
Confidence Level Comments: No Data Available
Grank: G5?
Greasons: No Data Available
| Type | Name | Database Code | Classification Code |
|---|---|---|---|
| Class | 1 Forest & Woodland Class | C01 | 1 |
| Subclass | 1.B Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland Subclass | S15 | 1.B |
| Formation | 1.B.2 Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation | F008 | 1.B.2 |
| Division | 1.B.2.Nb Rocky Mountain Forest & Woodland Division | D194 | 1.B.2.Nb |
| Macrogroup | 1.B.2.Nb.5 Subalpine Fir - Engelmann Spruce - Whitebark Pine Rocky Mountain Forest Macrogroup | M020 | 1.B.2.Nb.5 |
| Group | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g Whitebark Pine - Subalpine Fir - Subalpine Larch Northern Rocky Mountain Woodland Group | G223 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g |
| Alliance | A3368 Whitebark Pine Forest & Woodland Alliance | A3368 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g |
| Association | CEGL000752 Subalpine Fir - Whitebark Pine / Grouse Whortleberry Woodland | CEGL000752 | 1.B.2.Nb.5.g |
Concept Lineage: No Data Available
Predecessors: No Data Available
Obsolete Names: No Data Available
Obsolete Parents: No Data Available
Synonomy: = Abies lasiocarpa - Pinus albicaulis / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type (Pfister et al. 1977) [(p.107)]
< Abies lasiocarpa / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type, Pinus albicaulis Phase (Cooper 1975) [description (p.57) overstory tree data table 15 (p.120), understory data table 36 (p.168).]
= Abies lasiocarpa / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type, Pinus albicaulis Phase (Steele et al. 1983) [(p.52)]
= Pinus albicaulis - Abies lasiocarpa Community Type (Cole 1982) [(p.14)]
< Abies lasiocarpa / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type, Pinus albicaulis Phase (Cooper 1975) [description (p.57) overstory tree data table 15 (p.120), understory data table 36 (p.168).]
= Abies lasiocarpa / Vaccinium scoparium Habitat Type, Pinus albicaulis Phase (Steele et al. 1983) [(p.52)]
= Pinus albicaulis - Abies lasiocarpa Community Type (Cole 1982) [(p.14)]
- ANHIC [Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre]. 2018. Community database files. Alberta Natural Heritage Information Centre, Parks and Protected Areas Division, Alberta Community Development, Edmonton.
- Bourgeron, P. S., and L. D. Engelking, editors. 1994. A preliminary vegetation classification of the western United States. Unpublished report. The Nature Conservancy, Western Heritage Task Force, Boulder, CO. 175 pp. plus appendix.
- Cogan, D., K. Varga, and G. Kittel. 2005. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program: Grand Teton National Park and John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. Final Project Report 2002-2005 Vegetation Mapping Project. Technical Memorandum 8260-06-02. USDI Bureau of Reclamation, Denver, CO. 87 pp. plus Appendixes A-F.
- Cole, D. N. 1982. Vegetation of two drainages in Eagle Cap Wilderness, Wallowa Mountains, Oregon. Research Paper INT-288. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 26 pp.
- Cooper, S. V. 1975. Forest habitat types of northwestern Wyoming and contiguous portion of Montana and Idaho. Unpublished dissertation, Washington State University, Pullman. 190 pp.
- Kagan, J. S., J. A. Christy, M. P. Murray, and J. A. Titus. 2004. Classification of native vegetation of Oregon. January 2004. Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center, Portland. 52 pp.
- MTNHP [Montana Natural Heritage Program]. 2002b. List of ecological communities for Montana. Montana Natural Heritage Program, Montana State Library, Helena, MT.
- Pfister, R. D., B. L. Kovalchik, S. F. Arno, and R. C. Presby. 1977. Forest habitat types of Montana. General Technical Report INT-34. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 174 pp.
- Steele, R., S. V. Cooper, D. M. Ondov, D. W. Roberts, and R. D. Pfister. 1983. Forest habitat types of eastern Idaho - western Wyoming. General Technical Report INT-144. USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 122 pp.
- WNHP [Washington Natural Heritage Program]. 2018. Unpublished data files. Washington Natural Heritage Program, Department of Natural Resources, Olympia, WA.
- Western Ecology Working Group of NatureServe. No date. International Ecological Classification Standard: International Vegetation Classification. Terrestrial Vegetation. NatureServe, Boulder, CO.